


Locket

by NathanielCardeu



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Attempted Murder, Avada Kedavra, Betrayal, Gen, Implied Hermione Granger/Theodore Nott, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Spy Terence, Spy Theodore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-13
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2020-06-25 19:51:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19752664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NathanielCardeu/pseuds/NathanielCardeu
Summary: There is a locket, and within it, Theo hides everything that he is. His mind must sleep, his thoughts lie dormant and dreamless. To do otherwise is to invite death.





	Locket

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Draco’s Den’s Half-Blood Prince Elimination Challenge (Round 2)  
> Potion: Draught of Living Death  
> Pairing: Theo Nott & Terence Higgs  
> Word Count: 800-1000 words

The locket’s weight is reassuring. He took it off his mother's body before she was buried. The Dark Lord’s ire is terrible to behold: so terrible it allows one to see those special creatures that pull the Hogwarts carriages. Theo tuts, pulling his thoughts from Thestrals and death. The locket is decorated in silver filigree, the front and back identical; so much so that it is impossible to tell them apart unless you know what you are looking for on a magical plane. Only one side opens though; attempting to open the other...

Theo breathes calmly. The intricacies of the locket are not important, only the mission. Steam billows from the heavy kettle’s spout, and he can hear the water bubbling within as he carries it to the bench. Dark eyes flick to Terence. His friend and co-conspirator, his unwitting scapegoat in case of disaster.

The cast iron is hot against Theo’s wrist as he presses it against the kettle, burning the dangerous thought away. The pain is suppressed, choked back until it is little more than a heavy breath. Terence glances back and Theo, who has already hidden the livid burn, gives him a grin. The smile is ephemeral, vanishing the instant that Terence turns back to watch the Death Eaters settling into their seats for the meeting. It is a big meeting, featuring many faces that rarely show up to these things. Faces that stay hidden to protect their usefulness to the Dark Lord, and if Theo is unable to control his thoughts better he might as well throw himself onto the large kitchen knife being wielded by the Lestrange’s house-elf, currently slicing into a loaf of fresh bread.

The locket is everything. He is the locket. Sealed, impenetrable to all. Extraneous thought is placed within and sealed away. Theo’s mind is a vacuum, cold and dark. He is void of emotions, of thought, of anything readable. Everything that he is, everything that he is doing, is sealed away. Dormant.

There is a tiny clink against the inside of the kettle as Theo pours the tea. Many bone china cups crowd the trays upon the trestle tables. The kettle is big and heavy, able to hold far more water than its dimensions would suggest. He thinks about this, and not what that clink means.

The truth is sealed within the locket. He is empty of all, his thoughts asleep, as he replaces the kettle on the stove where a wordless whisper of magic pulls a vial from the depths. It is a move that is hidden in the silver etching of the locket that takes up all of Theo’s mind. His breathing is shallow but steady as Terence walks over to him.

“Alright, mate? Looking a bit pale.”

Theo is able to smile easily, untroubled. “Being a sickly infant leaves its mark on a body." He lowers his voice. "Are you prepared, my friend? Think of sleep, of calming peace. Close your mind and lock it all away.”

“I’m scared...”

“Quietly now," Theo mutters, hiding his despair. "Come on, peaceful sleep, calming sleep. Focus. You’ll be fine.” Theo slaps him on the shoulder, the bottle sliding down the fabric of Higgs' robes and into his pocket. Theo has followed it with his eyes and suppresses the flash of relief and sorrow. It is contained in the locket, within its delicate lines of artistry. He is sleepwalking as he picks up the other tray and follows Terence into the great hall.

All thought is smothered, faster now; hastily, but with care. What will happen after the tea, who from the Order will be called, whether he will walk out of here; all is within the locket. His mind sleeps.

“Ahh,” breathes the cold, high voice, “thank you, gentlemen. Set the trays on the table.”

Theo and Terence oblige and step back. Theo’s eyes are fixed on the wall, on a blank space between paintings. He is like that space: empty, a shell. A dark, unending void.

“Gentlemen, ladies… before our drinks, some business.”

The delay is not an issue, but Theo allows a glance towards his friend. He ignores the sweat on Higgs' temple. Words wash over him, and he does not seem to be paying attention. His skills lie in more than potions, and though he sleeps, he stores the information he sees and hears in the locket.

“Master Higgs.” The Dark Lord’s voice calls to Theo’s friend, his…  _ The locket belonged to my mother, who paid the price for failing the Dark Lord. The locket belonged to my mother... _

The relief Theo feels, as the Dark Lord’s attention moves away from him, is hastily dispersed through his body and tranquillized.

“Where does your true loyalty lie?” A ripple of whispers skates around the table.

“With you, my Lord.” Terence’s voice is calm and poised. Theo stares ahead, teeth gritted; the visible tremble in Terence's hands is buried in the locket.

The Killing Curse is sudden, and Theo holds onto the locket with everything he has. He is glad there were no accusations, no questioning, just terrible justice doled out… But the locket is all there is amongst the uproar… The bottle is found in Terence’s pocket, Snape's test confirming a deadly poison. Terence’s family is questioned, his body removed; the Order is thought to have got to him, have some hold on him. Though he, too, is questioned, no one queries the tears in Theo's eyes; he lost a friend tonight. Some ponder if there was more than one spy here. The tea lies untouched, tainted with the poison that would have killed them all.

Theo is somnambulant as he collects the tray, his mind dreamless. Not thinking of his bookworm's beautiful smile, nor the life-debt he owes to Potter...

“Master Nott,” the Dark Lord calls. “A moment?”

A single word escapes Theo. A word with meaning and double meaning; traitorous, or simply scared? Only the Dark Lord can say.

_ Shit. _

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to everyone who voted for my story in the first round. I hope my second offering is as enjoyable for you. If you are coming to this story after the challenge, check out the rest of the collection. There are some great drabbles there! x
> 
> Additional: I am considering whether to expand this drabble into something more... maybe a post-Voldy-wins AU sort of thing, or even a rewrite from some point in the canon... Dunno, early days, but it can sit in my brain to germinate ;)


End file.
